Map: States Where Felons Can’t Vote

Includes interactive map

The map below, created by designer/programmer Lewis Lehe, shows state-by-state felon voting laws and population impacts as reported by the The Sentencing Project, based on 2010 data. Note: among the eleven states that deny voting rights to those who have completed their full sentences (including parole), restrictions vary significantly, and often depend on the severity of the crime. A good overview of each state’s specific restrictions can be found at ProCon.org.

[See article below map]

The United States stands out as one of the strictest nations in the world in denying voting rights to convicted felons. As of 2010, more than 5.8 million Americans — or about 2.5 percent of the voting age population — were unable to vote due to a current or previous felony conviction, according to a report by The Sentencing Project. That’s roughly one in every 40 adults in America.

Each state has its own felon voting laws, and all but two — Maine and Vermont are the only states that allow prisoners to vote — have some kind of disenfranchisement law that prevents current or former offenders from casting their ballots. The degree of severity varies dramatically by state and crime. The report found that nearly half of the disenfranchised population lives in the eleven states where voting rights for ex-felons are only conditionally restored.

Disenfranchisement laws disproportionately affect African Americans: in 2010, 1 of every 13 African Americans of voting age — about 7.7 percent nationally — was disenfranchised, a rate more than four times greater than with non-African Americans. In some of the strictest states — including Florida, Kentucky and Virginia — more than 20 percent of the African American population was disenfranchised, the report found.

In February, Attorney General Eric Holder called on the states with some of the strictest laws to restore voting rights to felons after their release from prison.

“It is time to fundamentally reconsider laws that permanently disenfranchise people who are no longer under federal or state supervision,” said Holder during an address at Georgetown University. “By perpetuating the stigma and isolation imposed on formerly incarcerated individuals, these laws increase the likelihood they will commit future crimes.”

About the author

Matthew Green runs KQED’s News Education Project, a new online resource for educators and the general public to help explain the news. The project lives at kqed.org/lowdown. View all posts by Matthew Green →

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If they are over 18 and register, yes. The possible exception ‘might’ be if they have been ruled to be mentally incompetent by a Federal Court. But I doubt it.

Virg Prit

If a person has been ruled incompetent by a county, state or federal court they can not vote.

Frank Hartzell

people need to read the constitution…The constitution states that the the right to vote can not be denighed or stoped for any reason.Read it ,by NO level of servitude,indebtedness,or level of incarceration.

Joel B. Taylor

I believe there should be a simple basic multiple choice questionare before voting. Half the people in this country are idiots! If they can’t pass the test, they can’t vote. WE DONT NEED MORONS VOTING FOR MORONS LIKE OBAMA BIN LADIN!!!!!!!

About The Lowdown

For educators and the generally curious, the Lowdown is a multimedia guide to understanding big news from California and beyond. It's part of KQED's News Education project . Matthew Green is editor and project manager. Contact him here.